Chapter 12

Ladine packed her bags and left early in the morning. As she passed Edmund she smiled, watching the way he tossed and moved, a soft smile on his lips, in his dreams. She sighed and knelt down and softly kissed his cheeks, then she turned and left. She carefully rubbed out her tracks as she untied her horse, Angel and led her into the water. She leapt on and dug her heels in to her horses flanks. The horse started, then seemingly soundlessly splashed off into the dusky morning. She could see the stars slowly flickering up above her in their endless velvet sky. She looked to the east and she couldn't see even a glow of the sun. Morning was still a long way off. Ladine smiled. She would reach Archenland by tomorrow, if she rode hard and only stopped at the Telmar river. She spurred Angel on into a gallop and prepared herself for a long day in the saddle.

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Lucy shifted on her bed, trying to get back to sleep. Giving up, she swung out of bed and walked out into the main hall of Aslan's How. She sighed and her hair away from her face. She wondered what Edmund was doing now, how had he escaped, where had escaped to. She knew it was useless thinking about him, she would probably never see him again, but his smile stayed in her memory, the way his eyes twinkled when he laughed, the way he rolled his eyes when she stamped her foot. Lucy sighed and tilted her head back. She wished she could see him now, tell him all the things she should have told him before she left. Suddenly, she wanted to see where he had taken her, to go to the cave and just remember all the things that had happened. She checked around her to see if anybody was watching, then walked out of the mound. She shivered in the cold night air and regretted not taking a cloak, but she continued on. She entered the wood and she stopped for a moment and breathed in the smell of damp earth and wet leaves. She smiled and shook her shoulders and for some reason she ran into the heart of the forest and twirled at the place where Edmund had called her beautiful she laughed in delight at the memory. She sighed in happiness and walked over to the cave and went inside. She brushed past the ivy and went inside. Lucy gasped in delight as the familiar smell of the musty rock invaded her sense of smell. All around her lay things that reminded her of Edmund. There was the first bow she had used, the one she got angry with and Edmund had snapped and told her 'tomorrow we'll find a better bow' . There was the cloak Edmund had used as bandages when the real ones ran out. She turned and saw the little chalk boards of where she and Edmund had had little competitions. Suddenly, all she could think was his face, his smile, his eyes, his name. Tears dropped a veil in front of her eyes, and Lucy could almost see Edmund in the blurry liquid. She stumbled out of the cave, back into the forest, suddenly she heard Edmund's voice calling her name.

"Edmund?" she called and stumbled in the direction of Edmund's voice.

"Lucy! I'm coming to find you!" she heard and Lucy ran towards it, her heart pounding.

"Oh Edmund! Edmund wait for me!" she cried and she crashed through the forest, heart pounding. She got to a little clearing and she saw Edmund turn around and look at her.

"Oh Lucy!" he cried and and Lucy just smiled in delight. She ran to him and he put his hand to hers and raised it up in the air and clasped his hand around hers. But as he leaned towards her, he faded away from her.

"No!" Lucy screamed and she watched as he left her, then looked down at her faintly glowing hand.

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Edmund gasped in horror as his beautiful Lucy faded away from him. He turned away, trying to stop his tears and suddenly he was standing in a different part of the forest. He could just see a hint of gold, the same colour of the gown Lucy had been wearing. He hunted after it, but as he came closer he realised it couldn't be Lucy's gown. He pushed apart the branches of a tree and saw the vole he had seen when he arrived at the Narnian camp. Edmund smiled through his tears.

"Hello." he said, and he wiped his eyes. But when he opened his eyes again he saw the great lion he had met with the little five-year-old Kiara and the other Narnians.

"Aslan!" he said, then his smile turned to a puzzled frown. "I don't understand. You said you would only meet me when I need you!"

"You do need me, son of Adam. Search for the stablegirl, then look to the South and Archenland. I will meet you again. But now I must leave you, for another needs my help."

"Don't go!" Edmund cried, but then he realised he was sitting up in his bed. He looked to the bed beside him and gasped as he realised that Ladine's bed had not been slept in. he leapt up and ran to where Philip and Angel should be. But instead the only horse standing there was his own. Edmund kicked the tree, then remembered Aslan's words. He looked down the river, then went and raised his fellow Narnians.

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Ladine swept the hair from her face and kept Angel in a fast canter as they neared the Telmar River. She and the horse waded in, till Angel began to swim and Ladine leaned down and splashed her face with water and scooped some up in her hands to drink. She paused, as she noticed a golden eagle swooping above her. She drank and tried to tell herself not to be so silly as to think the eagle was following her, but it seemed large enough to be a talking bird. She spurred Angel to go faster and soon the horse began to walk again as it reached the river bank. She felt the horse tire beneath her, but she spurred the mare on, going faster and faster. When Ladine looked up again, she saw the eagle again.

"That cannot be a coincidence." she muttered, and dug her heels into Angle's tired flanks. Suddenly, the eagle swooped down and Ladine screamed as it flew towards Angel, then up again. Ladine clung desperately to the horse as she bucked, but she slipped and landed on the hard, green grass. The eagle swooped again, and Angel panicked and bolted, leaving Ladine with no horse. She turned and watched as the eagle landed and grew into a golden lion. Ladine gasped in horror.

"Aslan..." he said, her voice choked in terror.

"Do not be afraid of me, little one. I have come to help you." the lion said and Ladine gulped.

"You flee to Archenland to tell your father of Edmund. But you do not do it out of love or friendship for him. You do it for spite." and Ladine shrunk, frightened as the golden beast paced around her.

"It is not his fault, little one." he told her, and she closed her eyes.

"I know. But I want to make Lucy pay for taking him from me." she said, her hurt and hate distorting her beautiful voice.

"She never stole him from you, as he was not yours to be stolen from." and Ladine opened her eyes to see the compassionate eyes of Aslan.

"Oh Aslan!" she said and flung her arms around his neck and cried into his mane. She pulled back. "I know what I must do. But I don't know how to get to Archenland." the lion smiled.

"I will provide, little one."

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Lucy watched as Aslan paced back and forth as his soldiers gained the alliance of the Telmarines.

"Aslan! We have found one of Miraz's sons!" Lucy, Susan, Caspian and Aslan turned to see a fawn run in.

"He was caught trying to flee to Archenland on a centaur!"

"Bring him in." commanded the lion. The fawn nodded and left. When he reappeared he was followed by two dwarfs who were holding the arms of a boy, whose hands were tied behind his back with rope. Lucy took a step back as he lifted his head to show he was Edmund. She felt Susan reach an arm out to her, and Lucy gratefully whirled around and buried her head in Susan's arms.

"You are Miraz's son Edmund?" Caspian asked and Edmund looked up at Caspian and gave a hollow laugh, but did not answer.

"Perhaps you will answer me." said Aslan, padding forward "Why do you and your brother flee?" Edmund said nothing. Caspian narrowed his eyes in anger.

"The great Aslan has spoken to you. Answer him!" he commanded. Edmund looked up at the lion.

"You are not Aslan." he hissed and then he spat on the lion's muzzle.

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Why do all my filler chapters turn out so long? The last scene was originally meant to be in a separate chapter, but I thought I had to add it to the end of this one, or it would just be a long chapter with nothing in it... Oh, and I've given you a clue about Lucy. Reread Chapter 10 to understand.